Ollie excited about Brimah's future

Amida Brimah’s signed letter of intent arrived at the UConn basketball office on Monday, allowing coach Kevin Ollie to talk about the promising recruit.

Ollie is clearly excited about the addition of Brimah, a 6-foot-11, 215 pound center from Archbishop Coleman Carroll High School in Miami.

“Amida was one of the most passionate basketball players I saw during the entire recruiting period, and I fell in love with his passion for the game,” Ollie said in a released statement. “He showed leadership both on and off the court, and then he was the best player in the game.”

Brimah, a native of Ghana, is relatively new to the sport, playing organized basketball for just over three years. He’s made great strides during that time.

He averaged 16.0 points, 11.7 rebounds, and 7.2 blocked shots per game last season, shooting 68 percent from the floor and 72 percent from the foul line. He finished with five triple-doubles for Carroll, which went 26-5 overall and reached the Florida Class 4A regional semifinals.

“We think Amida can be another in the long line of outstanding UConn big men,” Ollie said. “He’s a terrific shot-blocker and rebounder. He’s obviously got to get stronger, but he’s got a chance to make an impact right away. I love the fact that he is dying to get up here this summer.”

Brimah visited with his future UConn teammates last week, traveling to New York to watch them play in the Jordan Brand Classic Regional game.

“With Amida joining Kentan and Terrence, we think we have three new players coming in who can all help us,” Ollie said. “What I like best is they each have a relentless motor that just keeps going. They are excited to play basketball.”

Brimah, who speaks English, French and four African dialects, plans to study hospitality management at UConn.